RCOH Zoom Meeting

Our guest speaker is Camille Nelson, new Dean of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa William S. Richardson School of Law, succeeding Dean Avi Soifer, who was dean for 17 years.

Beginning her first semester amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Nelson has immediate goals to ensure the UH law school community is prepared. “Our students, staff and faculty are the heart of everything we do—we must continue to prioritize their health and well-being,” she said.

At the same time, Nelson plans to continue focusing on student support and preparedness, curricular development and innovation, the scholarly work of the UH law school’s exemplary faculty, and ensuring that programs provide opportunities for students.

She has been a trailblazer as an attorney, and in academia. Previously serving as Dean of the American University Washington College of Law, Nelson envisions the possibilities for the future of UH’s law school.

“As a woman law dean of color, I am particularly interested in how we might envision a world where Richardson lawyers are on the vanguard, ready to innovate in furtherance of access, inclusion and equity,” said Nelson. “I am mindful of the areas where women, and those who are often considered non-traditional lawyers, are underrepresented in legal practice and want to make sure that we are opening up space for our students in every legal domain.”